<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<title>The Perks of Being Swapped In Feedback by lunarpaddle</title>
<style type="text/css">

body { background-color: #ffffff; }
.CI {
text-align:center;
margin-top:0px;
margin-bottom:0px;
padding:0px;
}
.center   {text-align: center;}
.cover    {text-align: center;}
.full     {width: 100%; }
.quarter  {width: 25%; }
.smcap    {font-variant: small-caps;}
.u        {text-decoration: underline;}
.bold     {font-weight: bold;}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26141158">The Perks of Being Swapped In Feedback</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/lunarpaddle/pseuds/lunarpaddle'>lunarpaddle</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Blaseball</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Boston Flowers, F/F</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-08-27</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-08-27</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-18 03:54:55</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Not Rated</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,557</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26141158</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/lunarpaddle/pseuds/lunarpaddle</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Later, they will blame the combination of their train of thought prior and the moment of pure terror seeing their only fear played out in front of them for what happens next.</p><p>(Even later than that, they will admit that it probably would have happened anyway.)</p><p>Right now, though, as they watch roots tear through the ground from the pet plant they kept near the dugout and swirling up into the shape of the most beautiful person they have ever seen, Morrow thinks they understand a bit better what people mean when they talk about love at first sight.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Morrow Doyle/Gloria Bugsnax</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>5</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>11</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>The Perks of Being Swapped In Feedback</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Morrow doesn't know how they feel about this whole transfer thing. They've seen a lot of other people being all positive and nice about it, excited for the new opportunities this brings and all that, but like... they'd have to move, and Charleston was really neat, and they'd enjoyed hanging out at the particle accelerator, and they'd already been through <i>so much</i> - could they not catch a break? Was it not enough that they were only about 63.8% real (according to Jemma at the particle accelerator labs)? That their limbs were only sometimes all connected to their body? That - </p><p>Okay, they were getting a bit worked up, and that wasn't helpful for anyone. Especially not in the middle of a game. Sitting in the dug-out with a bunch of people they didn't really know was already kinda awkward - they should probably, like, make conversation or something?</p><p>"Hey," they say to the large amalgam of concrete and plantlife that bats after them - they think their name is Moses, or something? "So, uh - what do you guys get up to in the post-season here? Any fun events?"</p><p>"I wouldn't know," rumbles Moses(?). "I've only been on the team a few days."</p><p>The concrete plant person hasn't been on the plant city team from day one? Damn, Morrow really needed to keep more up to date with this stuff. </p><p>The flower lady, Lotus? They think? Steps away from the plate and heads back towards the dug-out, Matheo getting up to take her place. The whole, flower person thing wasn't too unusual by blaseball standards, but they'd heard she grew out of someone's ashes? And that kinda freaked them out - god knew they worried enough about getting incinerated anyway, thinking about being reincarnated as some plant-person type thing was - well, Morrow thought they'd much rather be allowed to rest in peace.</p><p>Lotus took a seat behind them, vines spreading as she sat and curling around Beck next to her (they knew their coach's name, at least) - those two were pretty cute, to be honest. Cute in a kinda, god I wish I had a relationship like that, why can't I meet a pretty girl who also plays blaseball and has cute twitter interactions with me and - </p><p>Okay, okay, okay. They really needed to turn down the negative vibes. That was like, the Flowers whole thing, right? Positivity! Flower Power! New City, New Them - and who knew, all these new people around, maybe they'd meet someone just like that!</p><p>They turned their head to start paying attention to the game just in time to see a flash of red, and Matheo turning into a pile of dust at the plate.</p><p>Later, they will blame the combination of their train of thought prior and the moment of pure terror seeing their only fear played out in front of them for what happens next.</p><p>(Even later than that, they will admit that it probably would have happened anyway.)</p><p>Right now, though, as they watch roots tear through the ground from the pet plant they kept near the dugout and swirling up into the shape of the most beautiful person they have ever seen, Morrow thinks they understand a bit better what people mean when they talk about love at first sight.</p><p>---</p><p>There's a wake going on over at Beck's place right now - Morrow had been invited, but it hadn't felt right to go. Even Moses had known Matheo a little, through the last few days and through their dad for a lot longer. They just - they didn't wanna take up space when they were all trying to mourn, y'know? </p><p>They decided to spend the evening exploring the Bloston Stadium, instead. For all that it was technically the same size as other stadiums, with all the overgrowth it felt bigger - like a vast, complex maze. It would probably feel even bigger with all the alternate-dimension stuff going on, accidentally slipping between worlds if you walked through the wrong opening, but they were mostly immune to that kinda thing since the Incident - they could see the holes, could probably go through if they wanted, but they didn't have to go anywhere they didn't want to.</p><p>Over vines half as thick as they were tall, under boughs and branches, they started to get a feel for the place. It was kinda therapeutic, to be honest - they could see how the Flowers had ended up with with a reputation for optimism. Surrounded by nature, moonlight falling softly through the canopy, half-covered in mud and trying to work out where the plate was, they were feeling pretty optimistic too. </p><p>When they did, eventually, find their way to the plate, they realised they weren't alone.</p><p>"Oh," Morrow breathes out, condensation forming in the air in front of them. "Uh, hey Gloria!"</p><p>Gloria twisted round to face them from xyr place at the plate and - <i>god</i> xe was beautiful. Like, that ethereal, can't take your eyes off xem kinda beautiful. </p><p>"So uh, you're not at the wake?" They ask, feeling confident for the first time in days. "That makes sense, I guess - I didn't really think I should go either."</p><p>Gloria cocks xyr head, trap opening slightly, but remains silent.</p><p>"Oh, uh, can you like - speak? I can - " they switch to ASL, pausing to switch syntax in their head. <b>Do you know sign?</b></p><p>Gloria grins broadly (and xe can grin really, really broadly), and giggles.</p><p>
  <i>Oh.</i>
</p><p>"I can speak, actually - it's just a bit harder. Learning sign language might be a good idea, to be honest." Xyr voice was <i>amazing</i> - okay, okay, turn down the gay just a notch. Normal, not entirely human conversation.</p><p>"Oh! Yeah, that - I had some deaf friends back in Charleston, and I just kinda picked it up over the years? It's pretty useful, actually, especially when my mouth decides to be elsewhere." Morrow sighed internally. They always did this, opened straight up with 'oh yeah my body parts disappear sometimes', like that's what someone wants to hear when you're just trying to break the ice -</p><p>"I can imagine," xe replies, voice warm. "Do you want to sit? You look like you've been walking around for a while."</p><p>"Oh! Yeah, that'd be - that'd be nice!" They could feel their face flushing, but they sat down anyway. Their legs were kinda tired. "I just wanted to get a feel for the place, y'know? Learn my way around and all that."</p><p>"I've been doing much the same," xe says. "I've seen this place from a lot of angles, but I couldn't really... move around, before. Made it difficult to form a mental map, as it were."</p><p>Woah.</p><p>"You were conscious, before?" They ask, brain running ahead of their mouth. Gloria doesn't seem upset, thankfully.</p><p>"I was! I know that probably sounds terrible, but it actually wasn't that bad! The team took very good care of me, and I love them all very much, and they got up to a lot of very interesting things. I will admit, I don't think I could go back to not being able to move - it's such a lovely feeling, you know?" Xe wrapped xyr arms tightly around xyr knees as xe talked, squeezing xyrself up before shaking xyrself out.</p><p>"Yeah, I know what you mean." They can't help but smile. "But... if you remember the team, how come you aren't at the wake?"</p><p>Gloria wilts a little at that, turning xyr head back to look up at the moon through a gap in the canopy.</p><p>"I remember them, but they do not remember me. Or, they do not remember me as more than a pet plant, at least. Beck invited me anyway - of course she did - but it just... didn't feel right."</p><p>Not when xe was the one taking Matheo's place, went unspoken.</p><p>"I get that," they say, wincing as one of their legs decides to take a vacation to the other side of the stadium. "Beck invited me, too, but I barely know any of them. But you do! You know them all really well, you just have to like, show them that!"</p><p>"You think?" Xe asks, turning back to look at them with a light grin. "I think I'd find it a bit creepy, if someone I'd never met showed up claiming to know me so well."</p><p>"I mean, yeah, but like - have you seen this place? This <i>sport</i>? Creepy and weird is like, blaseball's whole thing! We're all used to it." </p><p>Gloria laughs, and Morrow gives up on trying not to be too gay, joining xem in laughter instead.</p><p>"You have a point," xe says when xe's calmed down, hands still flapping lightly. "But it applies to you, too! If I have to get over myself and go hang out with the team, so do you."</p><p>Usually they'd object, but they could feel the positive vibes coursing through them, and honestly xe was probably right - they were part of the team now, and they should be with that team on a night like this.</p><p>"Alright then," they say, getting to their feet and extending a hand to Gloria. "To the wake, my lady?" </p><p>Xe giggles and takes their hand, pulling xyrself up. </p><p>"To the wake it is," Xe says, and they make their way off through the overgrowth together.</p><p>Maybe this whole transfer thing wasn't <i>all</i> bad, after all.</p>
  </div></div>
</body>
</html>